Phishing and BEC Trends Show Increased Impersonation and Evolving Social Engineering
Threat researchers reported continued growth and diversification in impersonation-driven phishing. Guardio data cited by KnowBe4 identified Microsoft as the most impersonated brand in phishing during Q4 2025, followed by Facebook, Roblox, McAfee, Steam, AT&T, Amazon, Google, Yahoo, and Coinbase. The activity reportedly surged around high-traffic seasonal moments (e.g., Black Friday “storefront” scams, December delivery scams, and January job-search lures), reflecting attackers’ focus on exploiting predictable user behavior and time-sensitive themes.
Separately, LevelBlue SpiderLabs reported BEC activity increased 15% in 2025 vs. 2024 based on MailMarshal telemetry, averaging 3,000+ BEC messages/month (peaking at 4,300 in July). The report noted seasonal/operational timing effects (e.g., quarter transitions and summer vacation staffing gaps) and highlighted evolving tactics including “contact details swapping,” where attackers impersonate finance teams to “update” official contact information to redirect payments or communications. Together, the reporting indicates sustained growth in impersonation and social engineering as a primary driver of fraud and account compromise risk, with attackers adapting lures to business cycles and consumer seasons.
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